


木漏れ日 (komorebi)

by bangyourshinki



Category: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Chapter 699 (Naruto), Post-War, Slow Burn, Uzushiogakure | Hidden Eddy Village
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:55:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26765401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bangyourshinki/pseuds/bangyourshinki
Summary: after the war, naruto and sasuke try to find themselves, and then each other.
Relationships: Dai-nana-han | Team 7 & Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura & Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 11
Kudos: 33





	1. prologue: how it ends

_and in the end,_

_i’ll do it all again._

_i think you're my best friend._

_— the kids aren't alright_

This is how it ends.

At least for now.

Sasuke’s breathing is shallow but consistent next to him, and it fills the silence that has enveloped the valley. Debris and concrete is piled up around them, damp and dripping, the waterfall practically a dam now. He chuckles; Baa-chan is going to be so mad about having to fix all this shit. Whatever. He’s going to blame it all on Sasuke. It’s Sasuke’s fault they’re here anyways. Stubborn bastard.

The ache from his missing arm (because that actually happened, what the fuck) has dulled to a consistent throb. He stares at the pool of blood that meets in the middle of their bodies, the scent of iron thick in the air. It’s funny, because for all the choices that Sasuke made and for all the steps Naruto took, they ended up in the same spot. _They couldn’t be more different_ , is what most would think, but that pool of blood is evidence that they’re wrong. He and Sasuke may be different, but they’re just two sides of the same coin — sun and moon, Ashura and Indra, dawn and dusk. Taking a look at the crimson-brown trickling between them, who would be able to tell how much of it is Naruto’s and how much is Sasuke’s?

Sakura-chan, probably, if anyone.

In hindsight, though, a missing limb is not the biggest loss. After all, both he and Sasuke had ended up in the afterlife, even if it was for, like, seven minutes or something. He’s not sure which he prefers. Because being dead after the war — after fighting Sasuke — had sucked, no doubt. But it was the first time in years that he had been at peace. It was the first time in years he’d seen Sasuke smile a genuine smile. It was the first time he’d thought about being at peace. It was the first time Sasuke hadn’t been running away; he’d been a steady company right by his side.

His train of thought is broken with a groan from the boy beside him. The sun has almost set, and the pink-purple hues paint both the sky and his best friend a beautiful lavender. The dimming rays highlight Sasuke’s nose and Naruto can’t help but think how despite blood, tears, sweat and scars covering his entire body, Sasuke is one of the most ethereal people he’s ever seen. As Sasuke turns his head to face him, his eyes flutter open, sharingan red having swirled back to a deep, dark black.

* * *

And then they talk. They’re on the verge of dying — for real this time, blood loss refusing to slow down and chakra refusing to build up — but they finally have time to talk. Naruto tries to explain, Sasuke questions and prods, and Naruto goes back to beat sense into Sasuke’s head.

“You ask me to explain, but honestly it’s not like I really understand it either,” Naruto says. “Just that when I see you take on stuff and get all messed up… it kinda… hurts. It hurts so much inside that I just can’t leave it alone.”

When Sasuke has exhausted his voice and Naruto has run out of things to say, all their words hang in the air, bearing down on them. _You can’t ignore us,_ they tell them. _Not anymore. Now you will listen. Now you will grow. Now you will face yourself._ Eventually, Sasuke turns his face away and cries. Naruto looks up at the pink sky and pretends not to notice.

* * *

Naruto only realises he’d fallen asleep when he wakes up, sensing Sakura-chan’s and Kaka-sensei’s chakras nearby. Well, more like, Kurama wakes him up because he sensed them. Sakura-chan sobs and heals and laughs and heals and he think she’s going a little insane — but that’s warranted. They’re all a little insane. Sasuke smiles once again and Sakura-chan laughs and Naruto’s heart is so full he’s afraid it would burst. He looks up and meets Kaka-sensei’s eye, which is turned up in a crescent-moon, the only indication that he’s smiling.

Sakura-chan leans into him and he feels both her smile pressing against his shoulder and her tears dampening his shirt. Her left hand has a tight clutch on Sasuke’s shirt. He brings his only arm around to hold her in a light hug, and looks up to meet Sasuke’s eyes: unwavering and mesmerising.

And this, Naruto thinks, this is how it begins.

_on my bedroom floor,_

_we put your curse in reverse._

_and it's our time now if you want it to be._

_— the kids aren't alright_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! 
> 
> this is my first fanfic EVER (as an adult) and my first fic for naruto over all! i've followed this series since i was a kid and after rewatching shipudden and catching up with boruto i just could NOT be happy with the ending. i'll try to follow canon as much as possible, but the only saving grace about chapter 699 is that if you actually consider it to be an ending, it's an open one, and you can go crazy with that.
> 
> since i've already tagged it, this fic will be focusing on the untapped potential of uzushiokagure. i have the fic planned out and i do want to finish it — but as someone who's studying and working i don't know when updates will be. hopefully i can finish this by the time 2020 ends! 
> 
> tags will be added as each chapter is uploaded; right now there's only one confirmed pairing.


	2. chapter 1: going, going, gone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> • naruto is 17 when the war ends, sasuke’s a few months older than him. this is a year and 7 or 8 months after the war ends, so they’re both around 18 going on 19. 
> 
> • there’s a reference to sasuke being in jail — which is anime!canon, not manga!canon. i thought it was a good touch though, so to those who didn’t watch the anime, this is just an FYI that it gets mentioned.

_when does a war end?_

_when can i say your name and have it only mean your name and not what you left behind?_

_— on earth we’re briefly gorgeous._

Sasuke leaving was not an if, but when.

He’s laying down on his bed, eyes closed, Momo curled up on his chest, trying to think of reasons for him to stay in Konohakagure. It’s been twenty minutes, and he hasn’t been very successful so far.

This city-village cannot forgive Sasuke, just as Sasuke cannot forgive her. It is one thing to tolerate sins. It is another to accept them, and yet another to move on from them. Konohakagure is a place of beauty for many; she is expansive: her land runs on and on as she bleeds into the rest of Land of Fire, the horizon difficult to see. She’s decorated with luscious green trees and lakes of sparkling, crisp water. Her sunsets paint the town a warm shade of orange — it reminds Sasuke of Naruto’s jacket and the glow that unfurls in Sasuke’s chest when Naruto smiles. She has always hustled and bustled with the sounds of children giggling and adults laughing, and she always will. Her streets will always be full of vendors that dote on Sasuke. Or, used to, anyways.

But for Sasuke, Konoha’s beauty is a facade, her makeup cheap and useless. She is rotting from within, her corruption and secrets like maggots eating her up from the inside. She stands pretty and tall to the ordinary eye, but Konoha is an empty, hollow thing — a mere shell of a village she hopes to be. She is as hollow as she is contaminated. Children giggle and adults laugh over the graves of hidden deaths and covert missions. The vendors stand over land that used to belong to the unacknowledged dead. The Kages and Daimyos have built their tower of power and influence on political manipulation and forced sacrifices. They have built it on dead clans. They have built on the Uchihas. They have built it on the home of Sasuke’s family. They have built it on Itachi’s grave. They have built it on Sasuke’s past, present, and future.

Konoha’s gates are more stifling to Sasuke than Konoha’s prison ever was. Under a blindfold, stripped of his power, stuck in a cage as a saviour of the world — Sasuke was nothing. He was not a shinobi, not a hero, not a criminal. He was not anything. Konoha’s gates, on the other hand, trap him with imaginary extended walls. If Sasuke closes his eyes, he can almost see them slowly closing in until he can barely move. Within Konoha’s gates, Sasuke is everything: a shinobi, a hero, and a criminal. He cannot propel himself because he cannot figure out how to move and in which direction to go. The ghosts of the past haunt him and use tight, strained chains to tie him down to the present. His today blurs into his yesterday, and tomorrow inches further and further away.

Konohakagure takes Sasuke’s breath away in the worst way. Her pretty fingers wrap around Sasuke's neck and gently squeeze his neck, slowly getting stronger and stronger until her sharp, painted nails break into his skin and draw blood, until his eyes roll to the back of his head and until the noise inside him compresses into one high, long screeching note.

Momo’s purr gets Sasuke's attention, and he opens his eyes, turning his head so he can stare at the lopsided calender on the wall. He's left the window open, and Konoha’s evening breeze is humid but calm, a reprieve from her hot sun and hotter yet air. His hair blows gently, softly tickling his face. The 20th of February is circled in red, over and over. He exhales; tomorrow, the state lifts the ban on him emigrating. _You better be grateful, bastard,_ Naruto had said, _a travel ban is the mildest form of punishment you could have_. Sasuke had decided it wasn’t worth another bout of indignant yelling to bring up his year in jail ( _Sasuke, you bastard! I couldn’t negotiate that! You know that! Do you know what they had wanted to do after your year in prison, huh? You ungrateful asshole!_ ) , and had instead replied him with a cool, long look.

“One night, one day,” Sasuke mutters into the silence of his room, Momo peering at him. “Then I can leave.”

* * *

There’s a rap on his windowsill, incessant and quick, before the idiot sweeps into his room. The nuisance hadn’t masked his chakra, so Sasuke stays still; his lack of defence is a welcome enough, he guesses.

“Yo bastard,” Naruto greets. Sasuke shifts to face Naruto in response. He's dressed casually. Gone is the hideous orange and black jumper and in its stead is a hideous orange jacket and black pants. Does the idiot really not own anything that isn’t orange? He raises his concern as much, and Naruto screeches, “Oi! Just because you refuse to have a fun wardrobe doesn’t mean we’re bound to your un-fun royal conventions of black and blue and purple! Orange is FUN! Unlike you.”

Sasuke stays silent, so Naruto continues, “Let’s go out. For dinner.” A beat, then he offers, “You can pick. I’ll save you from having to eat ramen yet again.”

Sasuke scoffs, “How generous of you, dear Hokage-sama-in-training.”

“Quickly, now, Sasuke-sama. Get your royal ass dressed up in blacks and blues! I’ll wait outside.”

Naruto steals Momo, and steps out of Sasuke's room, glancing around the apartment as he scratches Momo’s belly in his arms. He’s been here enough, but seeing the apartment almost bare and empty leaves a pang in his heart. Sasuke has never been one for decorations — he’s always been about the necessities and convenience, and it had reflected in his apartment.

Now, though, even the two photos that used to hang on the wall are gone. Naruto had made a small Susanoo ornament during the previous Rinne festival for Sasuke — the latter had hung it near the kitchen’s entrance — and that was packed up too. The few books that Naruto and Sakura had gotten Sasuke over the past year and a half were nowhere to be seen either. They had ranged from topics covering the technicalities of Kenjutsu and one-handed chakra manipulation to the poetry and prose that contemplated the meaning of life. Naruto supposed that all of the missing items were bittersweet, because all Naruto had of Sasuke was this apartment, and everything that indicated Sasuke lived here was almost gone. But it also meant that Sasuke was going to bring them everywhere he went — all packed up in one small, neat scroll. The books, the ornament, the photos of Team Taka and Team 7. Naruto wouldn’t bring it up because he didn’t want to embarrass him, but Sasuke was a freaking sap.

“Are you done staring at nothing?” Sasuke drawls from behind him. Naruto turns to look at him; he’s dressed up similarly to him: a navy-blue long-sleeved shirt over black pants, his hair tied up, loose strands falling around his face. A pair of purple and black eyes stare steadily back at him, and Naruto won’t admit it out loud, but there is something very pretty about the Rinnegan, especially on Sasuke. Naruto remembers how Sasuke had told him he was growing out his hair to hide it. In response, Naruto had told him to own it, and the other had just rolled his eyes. But Konoha knows Uchiha Sasuke, both by name and face. Hiding half his face would do nothing. Naruto fights a smile off his face as he realises that Sasuke really is owning it tonight, Naruto by his side. He's proclaiming, _this is me, unapologetically me, right here_. He's proclaiming, _your words and stares have never broken and will never break me_. He's proclaiming, _hello world, I am Uchiha Sasuke, and what could you ever do about it?_

Sasuke realises he’s not going to get an answer, so he walks out the door, holding it open for Naruto to follow.

Naruto follows.

* * *

They walk in relative silence, their sandals click-clacking against the concrete road. It’s a quiet Wednesday night, only a few passers-by around them. Naruto is walking close enough to Sasuke that their hands and shoulders keep brushing, but Sasuke doesn’t seem bothered, so he isn’t either. Naruto doesn’t exactly know where they’re going, only having a few guesses based on the route they’re taking, but he did say that Sasuke could pick tonight’s place. He stays quiet and keeps pace.

They end up in front of an izakaya. It’s a quaint place and the aunty that runs it usually dotes on him. Naruto mouth waters at the thought of getting some yakitori and hotate mentaiyaki as he sniffs in the waft of grilled food escaping the tent. He sees Sasuke peer at him from the corner of his eye, an amused smirk on his face. He grins back, and they step into the izakaya together.

They get a table by the window, after which ordering is a quick affair. Naruto settles down across him and quickly rambles a list of the items he wants. Sasuke doubles the order, getting the same for himself, but not before adding two beers on top of that.

As they wait, Naruto asks, “What time will you set off tomorrow?” Sasuke stares outside the window as he replies, “The council lifts my ban at 12pm, but noon gets pretty hot. Probably around 4pm.”

“Aww, royal-Sasuke-sama. He shies from the Sun,” Naruto giggles mischievously.

Sasuke stops himself from agreeing. How does he tell the blonde boy in front of him that his brightness makes him want recoil and escape into the darkness? That the brilliance he exudes makes Sasuke feel like he’s been stripped raw to the core of his self — that his shield of lies and deceit and mystery feels like it has been crushed into the dust that he kicks around with his feet? Naruto is the Sun and he dazzles so radiant that he penetrates Sasuke’s very being. He shines all the way through till the crux of Sasuke lights up. The Sun is a large star; its power reaches every crook and cranny of the earth, and no individual can escape the inevitably of the Sun. How does Sasuke tell Naruto that he’s right? That he shies away from the way Naruto sees right through him, into the deepest parts of his soul? Naruto forces him to face the facets of himself he wants to ignore. How does he tell Naruto of the power he holds over Sasuke? That in front of Naruto, Sasuke’s vulnerability is inevitable?

He doesn’t know how to. Instead, he jokingly taunts, “At least I’m not afraid of ghosts, idiot.” Sasuke tunes out the lightly heated rant he gets in response, choosing to lean his face on his one palm to stare at Naruto while he dishes out some stupid insults, exaggerated hands, boisterous voice and all.

He zones back in when the server slams several plates and two mugs of beer down on the table, the liquid sloshing over and spilling on to the table. He catches Naruto saying, “— asshole bastard, who would even miss you when you’re gone? Where are you going to go anyways? The Raikage will have your head before he lets you enter Kiri, you stupid bastard —“

Sasuke cuts him off, “Oto.” Naruto eyes widen slightly, and he can see the blonde holding back from asking a gazillion questions. He’s feeling charitable, so he continues, clearing his throat, “Otogakure. I just— I need to see how Taka is doing. How Oto is doing. If they’re shaping up okay. If they need help.”

“You know you’re not responsible for that village, right?”

“Except I am,” Sasuke clarifies. He carries on speaking before Naruto can come rushing in to absolve Sasuke of sins he isn’t even responsible for, “I am. Even though he didn’t die, I did kill Orochimaru. I freed the citizens, but I didn’t give them anything to survive on. I left them starving, homeless and leaderless, even if it was a bad leader. What good could that have done?”

Naruto opens his mouth, but Sasuke doesn’t want to hear it. He takes a skewer of chicken and stuffs it into Naruto’s mouth to shut him up, and the blonde glares at him as he chews around the food in his mouth.

Sasuke takes a long sip of the beer. “I have to set things right,” he explains, looking up to meet Naruto’s eyes. He doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to how blue they are. The idiot is biting on a piece of scallop now, and Sasuke can visualise the gears turning in his head. The world thinks Sasuke is the scary one — the silent one, the one who speaks only to let his words pierce through you and bleed you out. The one with the sharp swords and the sharp words. Sasuke’s words are always carefully thought out, having been carved again and again against the edge of a knife until they are needle-like — not unlike senbons. Until all it takes is two or three quick words to leave you stricken, just long enough so Sasuke’s sword can split you apart. The world is mistaken. When Naruto quietens down and thinks before he speaks: that’s when the world should be the afraid. Because Sasuke’s words might be sharp, but Naruto’s are positively destructive. Naruto knows how to twist words and emotions that make you question your essence and doubt yourself. Sasuke will never make you disbelieve your resolve; at least you lose with pride and dignity. Naruto, on the other hand, will crush your will. His words can and will leave you feeling a pathetic loser: a loser who — in his most crucial moments — couldn’t even stay true to who he wanted to be.

Naruto continues to chew, staring at him. Sasuke meets his gaze steadily, and they eat in silence. Eventually, though, Naruto gives up on what he wants to say. His shoulders relax slightly, and his eyes curve up. He finishes chewing, then says, “Well. If you ever need help, don’t be a wimp, Sasuke-bastard. Oto is only a day away, and I would love to leave Kaka-sensei to deal with Hokage issues by himself.”

Sasuke’s mouth lilts up in a small smile, “Alright, idiot, I’ll take you up on that if I ever need to.”

* * *

Later, when they’ve both had their fill, and they’re lounging in the restaurant finishing up their third mugs of beers, Sasuke asks for a favour.

“Will you take care of Momo for me?”

Naruto chokes on the beer, his coughs loud in the now-empty restaurant. It’s late and most people have left.

“It’s fine if you can’t, idiot. I can ask someone else, or just bring her around until she gets sick of travelling.”

“No, no, it’s not that,” Naruto rebuts. “It’s just— do you trust me with Momo? I know she’s close to you, and I don’t— I don’t wanna screw that up.”

“It’s not like you haven’t babysat her before. After me, she’s the most comfortable with you. I have all the items, and you can just bill anything else you ever need to get for her to me.”

Like the idiot he is, Naruto takes offence to that, “Hey! I'll have you know that I'm rich now! You think I can’t take care of Momo? Go on your world tour, bastard! When you come back, Momo will think I’m a better dad than you!”

Sasuke can’t help the bubble of laughter that rises up his throat. What an absolute _moron_. He lets the laugh out, then he keeps going. The alcohol must be getting to him. Naruto joins in, and they sit around the window table, laughing and giggling over nothing like two fools. When the guffaws subside into snorts and giggles and then into nothing, Naruto looks at him, mirth and fondness raw in his eyes. He reaches over to cup Sasuke’s one hand resting next to his mug, and questions, “You know, right? That you’re a good man?”

Sasuke blinks, and he can’t believe the trust and honesty he sees in the pair of blue eyes across him. How does Naruto think that so undoubtedly? How does he believe that when Sasuke himself doesn’t? He looks away, and instead stares at the hand covering his own, loose strands of his hair falling over his face.

“Whatever you’re doing,” Naruto says, taking Sasuke's palm and intertwining his fingers with his own, “It better be to understand this: that you’re a good man.” He can feel Naruto’s gaze boring into him, but he doesn’t want to look up. Across the table, Naruto continues, “Until you believe me, I'll keep saying it. You’re a good man.”

Sasuke stays silent. He doesn’t know what expression Naruto is wearing, but his index finger is forming circles around Sasuke’s thumb. He takes their intertwined fingers and holds them up so that they’re palm to palm, wrists perpendicular and arms against the table. They’re like that for a moment, until Naruto loosens his grip and turns Sasuke's palm upwards, using his hand to scribble random patterns across Sasuke’s palm and fingers, his touch featherlike and ticklish, occasionally pressing down with more pressure. It’s quiet in the restaurant. They’re the only ones left, with the exception of one other couple. The only sounds that fill the space are the whir of the fan over their table, and the distant clinking of the dishes being washed in the kitchen. The mugs of beer on their table are sweating with condensation, but both of them do nothing to finish up the drink before it gets too warm. Naruto lets go of his hand for a while, Sasuke’s arm casually resting in the air before Naruto clasps his hand again, inserting his fingers between Sasuke’s, the palm of Naruto’s hand meeting the top of Sasuke’s hand.

They stay like that for a while: hands interlaced, Sasuke focusing on their hands, Naruto focusing on Sasuke.

* * *

After Sasuke pays, Naruto walks him home, breaking the stillness of the air with that rare and reserved low timbre of his voice that he speaks with sometimes. His arm is thrown over Sasuke’s shoulders, Sasuke’s only arm squished between their bodies, and his face is extremely close to Sasuke’s. Sasuke can’t decide if he wants to throw the idiot off or press closer to him, so he does neither, just lets him ramble on about Kakashi’s lazy ass, meeting Gaara soon, and something about Konohamaru pestering him. There was something about Hinata, too, but Sasuke was especially not going to bother with that. Naruto’s arm slides down to hold Sasuke around his stump, and then even lower to hold him around the waist. Sasuke surveys Naruto from the corner of his eye, but the man seems to either have done that subconsciously, or he was a pretty good actor.

Whatever. 

By the time they reach Sasuke’s apartment, Naruto is on some spiel about Sakura and how she needs to stop overworking. He only realises they’ve reached their destination when Sasuke stops walking and puts some distance between them. He opens his mouth to say something, and Sasuke notices that his eyes are slightly wet; there’s a sad smile on his face as he utters out, “Bye then, Sasuke. Rest well.”

“Drink some water when you get home, Naruto,” Sasuke replies. “Don’t fall asleep right away.”

“Of course, bastard,” there’s a grin on Naruto’s face now. It’s so fake Sasuke wants to throttle him. He starts to walk away backwards, still facing Sasuke, not looking away from him. Naruto's gaze is rarely magnetising — usually more kind and open — but Sasuke finds himself unable to look away. It’s only now that Sasuke wishes he had let down his hair. Naruto lets out another “Bye!” before turning around and starting to walk.

Naruto takes a step, then another. 

Then he stops. 

He turns his head sideways, just enough so that he can see Sasuke. “Hey,” he utters out, his low voice loud in the silent night. “Sasuke. Write to me, okay? Even if it’s something stupid like you tripping over a root, can you write to me? I promise I won’t laugh.”

Naruto’s eyes glisten under the dim streetlights, and his mouth is fixed in a straight line. His hair is blowing under the breeze of the night, his hands tucked into his orange jacket, his whiskers a faint shadow in the night. Sasuke forces down the uncomfortable feeling in his chest, pulsing and present within him, and acquiesces, “Okay, I will.” He waits for a second, then doubts, “Although I think you will laugh.”

Naruto lets out an amused huff, then turns to face front, and after a moment or two, starts to walk. Sasuke watches him until he disappears.

* * *

The next day, Sakura sends Sasuke off with a bento box, Kakashi by her side. His former sensei has a light-hearted smile on his face, but his words are heavy as he warns Sasuke, “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” Sasuke nods, understanding the warning loud and clear: _you have very few chances left to fuck up_.

Naruto meets him further down the forest, way past the gates. He pushes off the tree he was leaning against, and reaches into his over-shirt to pull out a hitai-ate. It’s old and scrappy, and the Konoha symbol is distinctly scratched out in one stroke. Sasuke’s eyes widen imperceptibly, before he reaches over to grab it, their fingers brushing as a result.

Sasuke doesn’t know what to say: a goodbye is too reductive and too superficial. And this isn’t a goodbye either. They will meet again. But leaving without saying anything doesn’t feel right — Naruto deserves something more than a wordless departure.

Like always, Naruto saves him, “Don’t forget your promise, bastard. You have your hebis and takas and ninnekos — there’s no excuse for something to not get to me.”

Sasuke shakes his head as he answers, “Yeah, yeah, idiot. I’ll stay in touch.” He pauses for a moment, then teases, “Although, technically, I never promised.” 

Naruto doesn’t take the bait, “Be careful, Sasuke. Remember, I’m the only one allowed to punch you.”

“I will, and I will.”

Naruto raises his hand, and Sasuke lifts an eyebrow as he brings his arm up to meet Naruto’s in a high-five. Sasuke allows himself to feel Naruto’s heat seeping through his skin for a while, before dropping his hand back down.

He adjusts his cloak, and starts to walk. This time, Naruto watches Sasuke until he disappears into the horizon that bleeds into the Land of Fire. Then, he, too, turns and strolls back to Konoha, to the pretty village with its gates and its walls.

_i’m an apostrophe,_

_i’m just a symbol to remind you that there’s more to see,_

_i’m just a product of the system of catastrophe,_

_and yet a masterpiece, and yet i’m half-diseased._

_— whatever it takes_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> • momo is the name of a ninneko, but in this fic she's just a random cat sasuke found lurking around him. 
> 
> • this is going to be a lot longer than i had presumed. sasuke leaving was one of the things that was supposed to happen in chapter 1. but. it is the only thing that happened in chapter 1. lmao.
> 
> • this will be slow burn and there will be pining. to clarify things: post-war sasuke is in no way ready for any relationship, at least not until he’s at peace with himself. naruto, too, has been through an entire war. he also hadn’t had time to process meeting kushina, meeting minato, seeing neji die, and realising there is an entire (fallen) village he can connect with. there’s some personal growing they have to do before they realise that they have any space to romantically love someone else. that being said, naruto has always been open about how much he loves everyone, especially sasuke. post-war sasuke has also been a lot more open about his feelings. in my interpretation, he lets himself feel more, but he doesn’t necessarily act on his feelings. 
> 
> • when i say post-war i mean their ages being around 17-20.


End file.
